A. Field of Invention
This invention generally relates to the art of methods and apparatuses regarding equipment used to retain spare tires for use with a motor vehicle, and more particularly to methods and apparatuses regarding wheel plates for use in removably supporting a spare tire on the underside of a motor vehicle.
B. Description of the Related Art
As is known by those of skill in the art, spare tires can be mounted to the underside of a vehicle with a tire carrier that uses a cable to raise and lower the tire from a storage position. A wheel plate is generally used to engage the wheel hub and thereby support the spare tire while in the storage position. Typically, wheel plates are made of steel which is prone to failure due to corrosion. Other types of wheel plates are made of composite materials which are corrosion resistant and therefore are not prone to this type of failure.
Certain composite material wheel plates have been found to crack when impacted from below, such as while driving off a high curb. This type of failure is caused by a cable tension spring contacting the ground or curb and thereby driving a point load into the composite wheel plate, resulting in a fracture.
Accordingly, there is a need for a wheel plate formed of composite materials that has greater impact resistance and is not prone to fracture failures resulting from underside impacts to the cable tension spring.